Advice to new writers about money

This is a repost from my old blog. One of a few I seem to have saved. Scalzi made some points that we should all consider.

I was reading an article by John Scalzi and I think every new writer should read it. In fact, even if you’re not a new writer, but you aren’t great at the business side of being a writer you need to read this.

A few of his notable points (paraphrased):

Your income is half of what you think it is. He advises writers to set aside money for quarterly taxes and an IRA. And don’t count on any money that you don’t have in hand.

Don’t have the cash for it? You can’t have it. Save, save, save before you buy something. Forget buying on credit; that’s what is killing the American economy. If you can’t save up for it, you don’t buy it. It’s that simple.

Buy the best you can afford. Don’t buy cheaply. Get the best you can and run it into the ground. Get your money’s worth.